


A Brush with Royal-tea

by tansybells



Series: Flayn Week 2020 [5]
Category: Fire Emblem: Fuukasetsugetsu | Fire Emblem: Three Houses
Genre: Developing Friendships, Female Friendship, Flayn Week (Fire Emblem), Gen, Once Again I Do Intsys' Work For Them, Pre-Timeskip | Academy Phase (Fire Emblem: Three Houses), Shopping, Sighs., no beta we die like Glenn
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-15
Updated: 2020-07-15
Packaged: 2021-03-05 02:02:21
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,635
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25276600
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/tansybells/pseuds/tansybells
Summary: Two odd girls make an unexpected connection, if only because one of them refuses to let the conversation drop.Day Five: Friendship
Relationships: Flayn & Edelgard von Hresvelg
Series: Flayn Week 2020 [5]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1824445
Comments: 11
Kudos: 47





	A Brush with Royal-tea

Market day.

The sun shining on her cheeks, the time-worn cobblestones beneath her feet, the chatter and unfamiliar scents rising in the air—all of these things made up Flayn’s favorite day of the week.

Market day!

Everyone was there, from students to soldiers, swarming the merchants and the wares they had on display. Flayn steeled herself to join the boundless, jostling crowd, but before she could properly dive in, a flash of white caught her attention.

The last person that Flayn expected to meet in the market was, of course, there. Edelgard, the Imperial Princess. Flayn had had reason to interact with the other two young lords, as Dimitri was the only one who did not immediately vacate the dining hall upon her days to cook, and Claude was uncomfortably interested in her secrets, but Edelgard?

Edelgard was but a mystery with whom she had never had cause to cross paths. Flayn, however, was not one to back down from such a challenge, and she skipped over to the stall with a smile and a wave.

“Edelgard!” she exclaimed, coming to a halt a modest distance from Edelgard’s side. “How pleasant. I did not know that you shopped here as well!”

“Of course,” Edelgard said coolly. “This is the closest place I can find my favorite tea without having to wait weeks for an order to arrive.”

Flayn tilted her head to the side, a question dancing on her tongue, but she turned back to the stall in order to fulfill her goal of surveying the day’s available wares. The question continued to dance, however, and it was barely a few seconds before Flayn looked back to Edelgard and blurted it out.

“Which kind of tea do you prefer?” she asked, surprising herself by the brusqueness of her words. It was quite shameful of her, to be honest, and Flayn found herself grateful that Seteth was over at a different stall in pursuit of his own acquisitions.

“This one,” Edelgard told her kindly, gracious despite Flayn’s awkwardness, and held out her purchase.

Flayn leaned in to sniff the sachet, and her eyes widened as the potent scent threatened to overwhelm her. It was citrusy, and somehow managed to be sharp while simultaneously smoky. “What _is_ that?” she exclaimed, recoiling away from Edelgard’s hand and covering her nose. “By the Progenitor Goddess, I do not think I could stand to imbibe such a strong blend at all, much less by means of recreation!”

“Bergamot. I’m quite fond of it, however strong it may be.” Edelgard chuckled warmly. After handing a few coins over to the merchant in exchange for his wares, she slipped the sachet of bergamot tea into the purse at her side. “Which one do you prefer, Flayn?” she asked.

Her sudden inquiry took Flayn by surprise; she had not expected that the Imperial Princess herself would take any interest in her. After all, the other young woman had made her disdain for the church—and her aunt—decidedly clear to all those with whom she conversed. Up to this point, Flayn had assumed that that disdain extended to her and her father as well. It was wonderful to be presented with evidence proving the contrary.

“I’ve seen you occasionally taking tea with the Professor,” Edelgard continued, seemingly unaware of Flayn’s internal turmoil, “but I’ve never stopped to consider what you might be drinking. After all, it doesn’t look like the Professor seems to have any favorite of their own.”

Flayn giggled. It did seem like that! The Professor always seemed to pick whatever tea that their companion would wish for most, without consideration for their own personal preference, and they never allowed their own thoughts to slip regarding any blend that they shared.

“I am fond of several different teas,” Flayn said as soon as she managed to quiet her laughter. “While I know it is rather childish of me, I often find myself indulging in the sweet-apple blend. There is something about it that reminds me of a brisk spring morning, and it brings a nostalgic sense of comfort to my heart.” Flayn made herself laugh again as she scratched the side of her face self-consciously. Hopefully, laughing at herself would allow Edelgard to not feel bad for also laughing at her.

It was alright. She was an odd child. Everyone knew this, and she knew for certain that her father’s own peculiarities would back up her claim. 

Yet, there was no laughter to be heard.

“There’s nothing childish about it.” Edelgard spoke confidently, calmly, like she was not saying anything even remotely irregular. “I am acquainted with several people who enjoy the sweeter things in life while also handling situations far more complicated than you or I will ever encounter inside these walls. It’s not a sign of a childish person, but rather a mark of someone who is mature enough to acknowledge when giving way to the things they enjoy will bring them peace.”

Flayn blinked. Edelgard seemed to thrive on the concept of catching other people off guard. Or did she only take pleasure in catching _Flayn_ off guard? No, no, Flayn was taking too much credit for the situation at hand. She had heard snippets of conversations between Seteth and Rhea wherein her aunt expressed frustration regarding Edelgard’s hostility towards the Church of Seiros, and it seemed as though Edelgard delighted in the contrary—particularly when the contrary turned the tide in her favor.

“I must say,” Flayn said, hazarding solemnity after her moment of consideration, “that your approval means far more than one would expect. I merely fear that if I continue to act as a child, my brother will but continue to treat me as one.” She sighed, only years of training staying her hand from tucking her hair back behind her pointed ear and revealing it for all the world to observe and gawk upon. “I wish I were fonder of staunch, hearty teas—like bergamot, as you are. You and I do not come across to be so distant in age, after all, and yet there is no doubt that you are far more mature than I can ever hope to appear.”

Edelgard shook her head. “Not likely.” Turning to the merchant once more, she pointed to the sweet-apple blend and lifted two fingers. With a silent nod, the man running the stall pulled out two more muslin sachets and began to fill them with scoops of tea leaves. “We’ve simply been placed in two very different situations, Flayn, which require different things. We’ve adapted differently. I doubt that if I were to walk a day in your shoes, I’d be able to maneuver it as adeptly as you do.”

Flayn blushed at the compliment, even as Edelgard serenely turned to exchange a few more coins for the filled sachets in the merchant’s extended hands. Then, to Flayn’s bewilderment, she held one of the sachets out for Flayn to take while holding her own up to her face. Edelgard took a deep breath, and when she pulled the sachet away, she was smiling. It was all Flayn could do to keep her jaw from dropping.

For as long as Edelgard had been attending the Officer’s Academy, Flayn had only ever seen her with a serious—occasionally edging upon severe—expression.

But the expression on Edelgard’s face in that moment was kind and sweet. Perhaps, it was even happy? Friendly? Something in Flayn’s chest fluttered at the sight, and she felt as though she had been granted a gift most precious and pure—a gift that was more than tea.

“Thank you so much, Edelgard,” Flayn said simply.

She wanted to sing, she was so overjoyed by the simple gifts that had been bestowed upon her. She smiled broadly as she accepted the sachet of tea, the familiar scent of sweet apples wafting her way, and she cradled it in her hands like a cherished piece of jewelry. Without giving herself a moment to think, she stepped closer to Edelgard—so close that she could barely catch a whiff of bergamot—and lifting herself as high upon her toes as she could manage, she kissed Edelgard’s cheek.

Edelgard’s gloved hand flew to brush against the spot Flayn's lips had touched. Her eyes widened with shock, and if Flayn looked close enough, she thought she might even have seen a faint blush begin to color her otherwise nigh-colorless cheeks.

“Flayn—”

Whatever Edelgard might have said was cut off by Seteth’s voice ringing through the open marketplace.

“Flayn! Where did you go?”

Flayn jolted at the sound, her ears pricking up as she looked around to determine where her father was speaking from. She was not doing anything _wrong_ by conversing with Edelgard, not as far as she knew, but her father occasionally struggled with the habit of seeing intentional slights where there were none to be found.

“I must go,” she said with a sinking heart. “Thank you, Edelgard, for the tea.”

“Flayn? Flayn?!”

Edelgard’s mouth opened and closed as Seteth continued to call her name. Like a fish, Flayn briefly, gleefully thought. She liked fish. And, she decided, she rather liked Edelgard.

“Thank you for the tea,” Flayn repeated, dipping down into a grateful curtsy that lasted but a heartbeat before she turned to hurry towards her father’s voice. And, turning over her shoulder to Edelgard’s shell-shocked expression, she called out behind her, “I would like to share it with you one day soon! Seek me out when you have the time!”

Her chest swelled with warmth and pride as she hurried to Seteth’s side. She was an odd child, she knew that. But there was naught wrong with that, not if she could still make friends with someone as equally odd as Edelgard. 

**Author's Note:**

> I very nearly didn't get this one posted on time! It took me longer than expected to come up with the basis for the story, but after that, it flowed relatively well. Writing-wise, at least. Narratively speaking, it's a little choppy for my taste, but I'm in a hurry! Twenty minutes to post! 
> 
> Besides that, I quite like it. If we aren't going to get any Flayn and Edelgard content, I might as well write it myself! You know? 
> 
> More fabulous Flayn content, both art and fics, can be found at the official [Flayn Week twitter!](https://twitter.com/flaynweek)
> 
> See you for tomorrow's prompt! "Healing." Woo! ❤


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